News that the Apple iPhone 4S is set to go on sale more than one month early in Korea has put rival Samsung on the back foot in its own country.

According to Chonsunilbo, the Korean regulator has signalled that – baring an unlikely failure of its mandatory certification testing – Apple will be free to launch the iPhone 4S in the country next month, an update that is unlikely to be welcomed by Samsung.

Apple appears to have learnt from the mistakes made last year when its slow work complying with authorities saw the launch of the iPhone 4 delayed considerably in Korea, causing issues for the company and its partner carrier KT.